The Humor Project is a Freestyle student’s opportunity to take what was learned from the Humor unit and apply it into some for of media such as a rap, mockumentary, comedy sketch, or a stand up performance. This is to test students on what they can utilize from humor techniques into something of their own original style.
My inspirations for my humor project are The Simpsons creator, Matt Groneg, and the YouTuber comedy sketch performer, Jaden Williams. Groneg’s well-known adult cartoon, The Simpsons, has been inspired by his own childhood in Portland, Oregon (Lisa and Maggie Simpson are based on his two younger sisters, and the infamous prankster Bart is an interaction of his kid-self). Groneg’s main comedy tools in The Simpsons are strong uses of satire and jokes, alongside slapstick, black, and blue humor. In The Simpsons, the dysfunctional Simpsons family live in their hometown of Springfield, said to be “a place where bullying, bad public schooling, isolated retirement homes for the elderly, alcoholism, nuclear threats, depressed workers, crime and corrupt politicians, lawyers, religious leaders, self-help gurus and businesspeople are rampant. Characters are frequently seen drinking, smoking, swearing, fighting and expressing other questionable behavior.” The Simpsons is considered one of the most contradictory cartoons ever to air, additionally becoming the first prime town animated show to have adult tones. Regardless, the animation and comedy of The Simpsons become more sophisticated, additionally using gags, references, and hidden messages only viewings with deep analysis can be noticed by the audience. Groneg uses almost every single comedy tool in the book, from caricatures, to parodies, to irony, to even unspoken truths, Groneg’s world of Springfield reflects what is happening in modern society today, and even goes as far to insult it, which is what makes the show funny in the first place. You can say The Simpsons is the embodiment of absurd humor. Meanwhile, my other humorist, Jaden Willaims, has less experience than Goreng. A software engineer who began his channel in 2017 and focused more on comedy skits that he self performed. Yet this is quite popular on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, as influencers and streamers employ the use of shorts to make their own funny skit, either borrowing a recording to roleplay in or exaggerate something else, or even to create their own comedy sketch to make the audience laugh. Williams is the latter, as his comedy skits vary mostly with situational humor, shifting point of view, jokes, situational irony, and banters. Williams does not employ insults like Groneg, however, he is similar to Groneg’s work due to expressing real-life occurrences, such as simply a child turning on the indoor car lights in a parent’s perspective. He also creates ridiculous scenarios that appear serious, such as two roommates finding a blackhole growing exponentially in their home.
For my own project, I want to use Groneg’s use of absurd humor and callbacks, and William’s use of situational irony and banters. Williams solo acting with video edits has inspired the set up of my project, as well as how he places himself or his fictionalized personas within hilarious sketches. Groneg, on the other hand, has pushed me to use absurd humor to insult and exaggerate things, the multiverse and cliches in pop culture media for myself in particular.